Nigel Farage claims voting system in Labour heartlands is ‘riddled with fraud’
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Version 0 of 1. Nigel Farage has claimed Labour’s decade-long dominance in the north of England has led to the region being turned into a “one-party state” which has resulted in the emergence of a postal-voting system ”riddled with fraud”. The Ukip leader plans to launch a direct assault on Labour today by unveiling a raft of policy announcements aimed at snaring the "blue collar" vote it its conference in the town Ed Miliband represents. The party will outline plans at the gathering in Doncaster to ease the burden on low-paid workers by overhauling personal taxation as well as setting out reforms of the National Health Service. Writing in The Independent ahead of the conference, Mr Farage said voters in the north of England were fed false information by Labour: “There is a major problem in the North of England: it’s called the one-party state. Labour’s decades-long dominance of the region has resulted in the emergence of a postal-vote system rife with fraud and intimidation, which would not be out of place in a country like Zimbabwe. “It has also led to a politically correct mindset which has resulted in a situation whereby only the views of the governing party were acceptable. There is no accountability, no checks and balances which are supposed to lie at the centre of our liberal democracy here in the UK.” Nigel Farage has filmed an advert with Paddy Power to back ‘Team Europe’ in the Ryder Cup (Andy Fallon/PA) Mr Farage, who will fight South Thanet, Kent, in next May's election, is expected to use his keynote speech today to make a "full frontal assault" on the Opposition, claiming it has failed the people it was founded to represent. "Ever since the Barnsley by-election three years ago, Ukip has been making inroads into seats in the north of England, and has, I think, become the second party of the North after Labour," he said. "And it's clear that Labour is rattled, for its recent tactic has been to print leaflets packed full of misinformation saying that we would privatise the NHS when they know this is not true. "Make no mistake, strong Ukip candidates will be targeting Labour-held seats in the north of England next year." Additional reporting: PA |